How to Make a 3-Year Old New “Big Sister” Happy

My little girl Story has two loves: books and stickers. I bought three booklets of 300+ Halloween stickers each from Michael’s in early September, a good two months before Halloween. How mistaken I was to think they would last till then. Story would sit and “do stickers” for an hour if I’d let her, and even with me setting some limits, she still had finished off all three booklets within a week’s time.

So back to the craft store we went, to stock up again and this time in duplicate.

I was thinking about all the meals that are made to celebrate the arrival of new babies, many of whom are siblings to old babies, like my Story. She’s now the 3-year old “Big Sister,” and boy, does she love wearing her shirt!

Have you ever thought to bring along, with that meal you’re delivering, a small gift with large entertainment value for the older sibs in the house? Stickers for 3-year olds are the perfect (and cheap) solution. Older kids might like a coloring book and markers, a Word Search or other activity book, a small puzzle, even a pack of gum. My 6- and 9-year old boys are still thrilled when they get to have gum, since it’s not a regular occurrence in our home. And you can pretty much never, ever go wrong with a small Lego set for small boys about their age. But stickers should do the trick for most 2- and 3-year olds. And I can tell you from experience, there’s nothing better than a big sister who can entertain herself while Mom nurses Baby.